Ranger Creek announces summer offerings

SAN ANTONIO, TX, June 21, 2011 – Supplementing their core line-up of beers, Ranger Creek will be releasing a series of exciting new beers and new packaging this summer.

First, hitting markets this week will be 22 oz. “bomber” bottles of Mesquite Smoked Porter. The brewery has received overwhelming requests for more beer in bottles. In response, they have chosen the Mesquite Smoked Porter, their signature Texas beer that is nicknamed “Barbecue in a Glass”, as their second bottle release. The beer has been bottle conditioned, which is a first for the MSP, and has caused the roasty, chocolaty flavors to intermingle with the smoky notes in a very profound way. Each bottle has a handwritten fill date and batch number on it. The bottles will be available at Specs and Gabriel’s in San Antonio, in addition to select retailers in Austin and Houston.

Next, Ranger Creek will release their first true seasonal offering this summer. The Ranger Creek Hefe does not yet have a confirmed release date, but it is planned for release in a few weeks. The Bavarian-style Hefeweizen comes from a homebrew recipe for which the guys won two homebrew medals at Houston’s Dixie Cup Homebrew Competition back before they started brewing commercially. The refreshing wheat beer is brewed in the traditional German style to honor San Antonio’s German roots. It will be available on draft only in limited quantities in San Antonio, Austin, and Houston over the next two months.

Last, the brewery will be releasing a very special small batch barrel-aged beer called Aimee. Aimee (pronounced ah-mee) is a tribute by Rob Landerman, Ranger Creek’s head brewer, to his wife. Modeled after the Flemish acid ale, Aimee is a complex blend of beers that combines the brewery’s standard La Bestia Aimable with two barrel aged versions of the beer. The two barrels were filled on Landerman’s wedding anniversary (10/27/10) and have been aging for the better part of eight months. The first barrel was Ranger Creek’s first used Bourbon barrel filled with La Bestia Aimable. The other barrel was a new toasted barrel that held a distilled La Bestia Aimable whiskey for short period of time, which was subsequently emptied and filled with La Bestia Aimable. A blend of Pediococcus, Brettanomyces Bruxellensis, and Lactobacillus Delbreuckii yeasts were added to the barrels, which imparted a complex blend of tart, sweet, and earthy characteristics. The two 5-gallon barrels were emptied and blended with 5 gallons of standard La Bestia Aimable. The result is a fruity and acidic Belgian-style ale that is subtly sweet with cherry and soft fruit notes, a gentle lactic tartness, and some deep, dry earthy characteristics. Aimee is the first of Ranger Creek’s sour barrel releases, but look for more coming out towards the end of this year. Only three 5-gallon kegs exist and have been released to the brewery’s first three accounts to say, “Thanks for all the support!” Look for special announcements from the brewery when Aimee is tapped.